Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - After a knee injury forced Hermes Franca to withdraw from his UFC Fight Night main event against Joe Lauzon on February 7th in Tampa, Iowa’s hard-hitting Jeremy ‘Lil’ Heathen’ Stephens has stepped in to take on the pride of Bridgewater, Massachusetts in what promises to be an explosive lightweight matchup." />

Franca Out, Stephens Steps in to Face Lauzon on Feb.7

Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - After a knee injury forced Hermes Franca to withdraw from his UFC Fight Night main event against Joe Lauzon on February 7th in Tampa, Iowa’s hard-hitting Jeremy ‘Lil’ Heathen’ Stephens has stepped in to take on the pride of Bridgewater, Massachusetts in what promises to be an explosive lightweight matchup.

After a knee injury forced Hermes Franca to withdraw from his UFC Fight Night main event against Joe Lauzon on February 7th in Tampa, Iowa’s hard-hitting Jeremy ‘Lil’ Heathen’ Stephens has stepped in to take on the pride of Bridgewater, Massachusetts in what promises to be an explosive lightweight matchup.

Des Moines’ Stephens (16-3) is making his first start since his UFC 91 victory over Rafael dos Anjos, a bout that saw the 22-year old score one of the most spectacular knockouts of 2008 courtesy of a third round uppercut. The hard-charging 24-year-old Lauzon is fresh from an impressive stoppage of his own, as he halted Kyle Bradley in the second round last September in Nebraska.

UFC Fight Night airs live on Spike TV from the Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida at 9pm ET.